Vegicano Cinco de Mayo Pop-Up with Peaceful Provisions

Last month, Vegicano hosted a pop-up dinner at Urban Vegan Kitchen with desserts by Peaceful Provisions; you can bet I was there.

The cocktail list was varied and I was glad they offered mocktails; it's so boring when the only options for those not imbibing are water & soda.

I chose the non-virgin madame du berry: mezcal, blackberry, lemon, peach bitters. It looked like it would be fruity and was served in this delicate champagne glass, but the surprise was on me because I forgot that mezcal is a smoky tequila. My fault entirely, and it's not the first time I've made this mistake. I get it, many people like to mix their sweet and savory. I am not one of these people! 

 

I was uber grateful when the amuse bouche showed up to cleanse my palate: brocetita de sandia vestido: watermelon, cucumber & red onion with chile, salt, & lime. What a bolt of flavor! We were definitely off to a good start.

*the picked onion was sandwiched in the cucumber fold

The evening's food menu:

 

The appetizer was guacamole estilo vegicano: with chipotle roasted chickpeas & walnut cotija and the guacamole was so delicious that I was able to look past the customary cilantro within. The crunch of the chickpeas were such a nice counter to the creamy guac (why haven't I seen this paired before?!) and the homemade chips were divine. It was really difficult to share this with my 3 tablemates; I easily could have commandeered the whole bowl and left happy.

There were two dinner options: glutenous or gluten-free; we all of us went for the gluten. Filete de seitan a la mexicana: with arroz y rajas, refritos, and cucumber pico turned out to be a flavorful spin on traditional beans and rice featuring seasoned rice and peas, melt-in-your mouth refried beans, and a slice of succulent seitan topped with onions and tomatoes (gluten-free option substituted jackfruit and yuba for the seitan). As someone who is used to the multi-faceted tacos and tortas served to order at Vegan Shop-Up, this struck me as Vegicano Unplugged.

For dessert, Peaceful Provisions offered the choice of either a donut hole trio (gluten) or chocolate cake: salted coconut dulce de leche, chocolate sauce, whipped cream, and spiced almonds (gluten free). I was THRILLED with my donuts, but had the opportunity to try the cake via my generous pal and it was amazing as well.

I know; it's blurry and dark. It was the best I could do before it was speared by 4 forks.

Three flavors of giant donut holes: chocolate ganache filled & tossed in spiced sugar, raspberry & cholula glazed, dulce de leche filled & topped with pepita. I expected to automatically love the chocolate the most, but they were all so wonderful with distinct flavor profiles that I honestly could not pick a favorite.

Keep your eyes and ears open for whatever Vegicano and Peaceful Provisions do next- either together or individually. They are talented people who continue to surprise and delight.